Claygate Recreation Ground has been nominated for the Fields in Trust UK’s Best Park, as voted by YOU! Award and now needs public votes to win. Over the last few weeks 214 nominations have been received by Fields in Trust for parks and green spaces that are a much loved part of their local communities. Now it is time to choose the winners; cast your vote at www.fieldsintrust.org/bestpark

‘Claygate Recreation Ground’ is right in the Heart of our village and is used by a huge number of local residents because it has so much to offer. Apart from the Football and Cricket that is played on the Recreation Ground, it is also the popular venue for the much love Claygate Village Flower show and Gig on the Rec events. In addition to this it hosts the Claygate 5K run and plays a big part in the lives of locals who enjoy exercising and keeping fit. (Not to mention the Pavilion Café where they can enjoy coffee and cake!)The Recreation Ground is the only Council owned green space in Elmbridge that is managed by Volunteers (The Claygate Recreation Ground Trust) If you think they are doing a good job please help them by voting for the Recreation Ground’

Damian Ross-Trustee

Across the UK nominations include large nature reserves and small community gardens, sports fields and playgrounds, each one a green space valued by the local community. Fields in Trust is a national charity that operates throughout the UK to safeguard recreational spaces and campaign for better statutory protection for all kinds of outdoor sites. Claygate Recreation Ground is one of 214 nominated parks across the UK. The park with the most votes in each of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland will be shortlisted and nominators will be invited to attend the prestigious Fields in Trust Awards at Lord’s Cricket Ground in November where the UK's Best Park, as voted by YOU! 2016 will be named.

Fields in Trust Chief Executive Helen Griffiths said: "We want to celebrate the parks and green spaces which are so vital to the communities that use them. A good park is reflective of the community it serves, but, as they are not a statutory service for local councils to provide, these much loved places are increasingly under threat of being lost to development.

"Recognising the UK's Best Park is a way of revaluing our green spaces; not viewing them just as a drain on resources for maintenance and upkeep - but seeing what benefits they bring; access to good quality recreational space can contribute to the physical and mental health of their local population and provide places for people to get together for community events."

Fields in Trust legally safeguards over 2,600 parks, playing fields, playgrounds, recreation grounds and other open spaces throughout the UK – a total of 12,000 hectares (30,000 acres).

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